Cuisinart Coffee Center: Cup Or Pot, Your Choice

One of the hardest things about coffee is figuring out the right amount, and preparing it properly. After all, it sometimes seems as if there are more ways to make java than there are coffee shops in New York City- from the venerable French press to pour over setups. But perhaps the two most popular methods in the United States for folks at home at the classic drip brewer and the single-cup pod system, as they serve the two most important audiences- an individual person, and a group or family.

The Cuisinart Coffee Center puts both of those brewing methods into a single machine, which allows them to take up less counter space than trying to have separate appliances. And you’ll be able to use either your own beans and make a full 12-cup pot, use their reusable filter cup for single-cup brewing, or use the popular K-Cups in any variety or style. The dishwasher-safe carafe is glass, you can adjust the strength of your brews, and there’s 24-hour programmability too. Plus, the single-cup side is flexible enough to brew in six, eight, or ten ounce sizes.

We’ve seen plenty of Cuisinart coffee brewers, most recently an espresso machine- and quite a few K-cup machines from Keurig directly and other companies as well. This one features a charcoal water filter, and a fairly large water reservoir for the single-cup side, allowing you to brew a few cups without worrying- but you’ll need to fill the main drip reservoir separately each time, as with most brewers, and it is a little difficult to reach. We found the K-Cup coffee results to be a little less hot than with dedicated systems, though the drip side was both as fast and as consistent as others we’ve tried. It won’t make your espresso drinks, nor is it compatible with the 2.0 K-Cup pods, but the Coffee Center does allow you to capture both worlds in one good-looking, easy-to-use machine.

If you don’t have much space between countertops and cabinets, it might be a bit awkward to make it work, as it’s fairly tall- with enough space for you to brew single cups into a travel mugs. But for those with more vertical space, and less room on the counters, the Cuisinart Coffee Center provides great-tasting coffee with a lot of flexibility. And it comes with a very solid three-year warranty too. Expect to spend around $199 online and in stores.

About the Author

Greg Greg dreamed up the idea for the Truly Network while living in Hawaii, which began with a single site called TrulyObscure. In 2010, when advertisers and readers were requesting coverage beyond the scope of that site, TrulyNet was launched, reaching a broader audience over a variety of niche sites.
Formerly the head technology correspondent for the Des Moines Register at age 16, he has since lived and worked in five states and two countries, helping a list of organizations and companies that includes the United States Census Bureau, TripAdvisor, Events Photo Group, Berlitz, and Computer Geeks. He also served as the Content Strategy Manager for HearPlanet, a multi-platform app that has reached over a million users and has been featured in the New York Times, Hemispheres Magazine, National Geographic Adventure, Fox Business News, PC Magazine, and even Apple’s own iPhone ads.
Greg has written as a restaurant critic and feature journalist for a number of national and international publications, including City Weekend Magazine, Red Egg Magazine, the Newton Daily News, Capital Change Magazine, and an arm of China Daily, Beijing Weekend. In addition, he has served as a consulting editor for the Foreign Language Press of Beijing, as well as a writer and editor for the George Washington University Hatchet, the school newspaper of his alma mater.
Originally from Iowa, Greg is currently living in the West Village of Manhattan.